The Medicine of Trees

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The Campbell River Arts Council, the Museum at Campbell River, and the Haig-Brown Institute present the 9th Annual Haig Brown Lecture, featuring Diana Beresford-Kroeger, along with a screening of "Call of the Forest".

The world’s forests have always worked like an unassuming medicine chest. Did you know that the aerosols of the Arbutus possess antibiotic and anti-inflammatory properties or that the scent of fir and pine trees can boost the human immune function? Hear Diana Beresford-Kroeger, world famous Irish botantist, biochemist and author, share stories about “The Medicine of Trees” and the sacred importance of forests for all living things.
Diana Beresford-Kroeger
As a young child Diana Beresford-Kroeger, was tutored under Ireland’s traditional Brehon Laws and given a sacred trust to spread word about the cultural importance of forests. Ever since then the renowned botanist and author has never wavered in her task to speak for the world’s forests. Combining a deep knowledge of both western science and aboriginal traditional knowledge, Beresford-Kroeger has long championed forests as medicine for the body and the mind. She is the author of several best selling books including The Global Forest, The Sweetness of A Simple Life and Arboretum America.
Together with her husband, Christian, Beresford-Kroeger maintains an extensive garden and arboretum outside of Merrickville, Ontario. The acreage, full of rare and endangered plants, reflects Beresford-Kroeger’s commitment to the urgent need to reforest cities and rural areas with what she calls a “bioplan.”

Call of the Forest
Call of the Forest (2017) takes viewers on a tour of the world’s most natural “chemical factories” in the northern hemisphere including the ancient Raheen Wood of Ireland and what’s left of the ancient forests of Vancouver Island. With famed botantist Diana Beresford-Kroeger serving as an enlightening guide, the film explores the essential work and irreplaceable legacy of forests. “We don’t fully understand the importance of the boreal forest,” Beresford-Kroeger says. “If we lose that, we lose everything.” The film urges concerned citizens to plant at least one native tree a year for the next six years to combat climate change.